Former President Donald Trump has been indicted on federal charges for allegedly violating the Espionage Act due to how he handled classified documents.
However, famed attorney and Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz, who represented Trump during his first impeachment trial, criticized the ongoing investigations into the former president.
Dershowitz expressed his concerns about a potential legal double standard in an interview with Newsmax, stating, “What I worry about is if it becomes Turkey, or it becomes Iran, or it becomes a country where suspicion is equivalent to conviction of guilt on one side of the political spectrum rather than the other.” He emphasized the need for a single system and standard of law enforcement, applying equally to all parties, regardless of political affiliation.
Dershowitz also highlighted the importance of upholding constitutional rights, including those under the First, Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments. “He fought back. And you’re allowed to do that,” Dershowitz noted of Trump’s response to rumors of his indictment, adding that such actions are not limited to the former president alone.
However, Dershowitz cautioned against crossing the line into criminal obstruction of justice, noting that evidence of corrupt motive is required to prove such a charge. He asserted that any investigation targeting a president, former president, or individual running for president should have the support of a bipartisan consensus, recognizing that “he’s crossed the line into criminality,” as was the case during the Nixon administration.
Ultimately, Dershowitz called for the Justice Department to uphold the principle of equal treatment under the law, without utilizing its criminal justice system to influence political elections.
